Case study · Food & Beverage
PE-owned food company cuts $11M in cost and returns 10:1 on invested capital
A private equity firm had combined three under-managed food brands into a new company and needed more from its assets. USC started with the frozen dinner lines, raising line efficiency, labor productivity and material yields.
Results
$11M
in cost savings
10:1
return on invested capital over two years
24%+
increase in labor productivity
Return on invested capital is measured over two years.
The situation
A private equity firm bought three well-known but under-managed food brands and formed a new company to revitalize them. It hadn't decided whether to hold or sell, but either way it needed higher productivity, throughput and material yields from the assets it already had.
What the assessment found
- Frozen dinner lines held the most material use and capacity upside
- Capacity lost to unexamined loss points and equipment settings
- Non-value-added steps in meat preparation and chicken lines
- Planning and scheduling not balanced to capacity
How the work was done
Lines: attack capacity loss
Mapped production end to end, targeted the leading loss points, set optimal equipment run parameters and installed shop floor controls for throughput and yield.
15%
increase in line efficiency
Prep: streamline product flow
Removed non-value-added steps in meat tumbling, tubing, cooking and dicing, and in chicken cut-up, forming and frying, with metrics displayed where work happens.
35%+
reduction in waste, by loss point
Planning: balance to capacity
Installed time-phased, capacity-balanced planning and scheduling, reorganized maintenance routines and tightened startup, shutdown, changeover and sanitation.
1.5%+
improvement in material yields
“[I] was amazed how quickly the plant had begun to turn around once the proper focus and structure was created in the facility.”
Lasting impact
The food company took on more volume and new products within its existing facility, and its private equity owner earned a 10-to-1 return on invested capital over two years.
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